OpenAI's European Stargate plans shrink as Microsoft and Google take over capacity

THE DECODER / 4/15/2026

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Key Points

  • OpenAI’s “European Stargate” initiative for Narvik, Norway has been scaled back from earlier expectations outlined by CEO Sam Altman in July 2025.
  • The shift is attributed to capacity being taken over by major cloud/AI players—specifically Microsoft and Google—reducing available resources for OpenAI’s plans.
  • The change indicates that real-world compute availability and supplier/capacity dynamics are constraining large-scale AI infrastructure rollouts.
  • The article frames this as a rapid reversal of optimism, highlighting how quickly market and infrastructure conditions can evolve for frontier model deployment.

Back in July 2025, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman expressed confidence that the conditions were right to bring Stargate to Narvik, Norway. Just a few months later, that optimism has largely evaporated. 

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